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There were no shortage of Premier League talking points this week. David Moyes fired. Ryan Giggs as player-manager at Manchester United, with Scholes and Butt to join him as a temporary Class of 92 coaching staff. Its incredible how a seventh place team takes all the headlines heading into a weekend the Premier League title could be all but wrapped up and heading back to Anfield for the first time since 1989-90. More on Liverpool in a moment. Here are this weeks Musings: - David Moyes relieved of his managerial duties at Manchester United was no surprise to anyone bearing witness to the miserable brand of football being played by last years Champions. Call the Moyes appointment a mistake. Call him out of his depth. The most important move made at Manchester United since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped aside 11 months ago was firing Moyes now. Some will complain about the manner of his dismissal. Some United supporters will remain steadfast Moyes should have been given more time. Others will blame the Glazers. There is plenty of blame to go around but to admonish Moyes is still more than fair for his grandiose failure as manager. How a manager cannot name a same starting XI over 50+ games is incomprehensible. From man-management fiasco, to tactical failure, from formational ambiguity to an extinguished team spirit, from transfer window flops, to public embarrassments, from press conference gaffes, to record breaking losses – you get the point; the Moyes era was a debacle any way you slice it. Disappointing results were less disconcerting than the porous performances, which were getting worse by the week. Its an indictment of Moyes who turned a group who were 11 points better than any a season ago into a lifeless, tactically deficient, error prone, often times confused group showing a lack of impetus to attack. Remember, this Manchester United team has 14-15 players who will likely head to Brazil to represent their respective countries at this years FIFA World Cup. The players havent played well. Ask yourself why. Patience can be preached when the process is clear and the directive is solid. Patience is earned, not given blindly. While "standing by" this manager was always an admirable instruction, it simply couldnt be given without a requisite resume or proper command of star players. This wasnt Manchester United of 1986 Moyes was taking over. These were perennial league contenders. The bar has been set miles higher. Preaching patience because United stood by Ferguson during difficult early days is a stretch. The game doesnt work like that anymore. The current squad was by no means on par with the likes of Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Barcelona, etc. Adjustments are still required. They shouldnt be 23 points back of Liverpool either. For a team of this quality to only pick up six points out of 36 against teams better than they in the table is unacceptable in a year where mediocrity reigns supreme in the Premier League. Flawed teams can win. And they have. Moyes was a mistake. Just a more costly one than Bebe, Djemba-Djemba, Kleberson, letting Pogba go or any other of Fergusons miscalculations. The club will learn, they will grow, and they will move on. Manchester United will be just fine. And are better off without Moyes. - So who will be the next manager of Manchester United? Louis van Gaal has all the right credentials and demeanor, and would bring the type of stature required at United. The Netherlands managers World Cup journey could extend into July, which is hardly what United needs. A summer makeover is ahead. Growing accustomed to the United way from the get-go, as early as possible is essential. No sense repeating last summers embarrassment by leaving it late. Short-term and long-term are intrinsically linked here. Just because a manager says hes not interested in the job doesnt mean he is staying put. United have found themselves on the wrong side of player negotiations, where the target says they would be up for a move to Old Trafford only to bag themselves a new, better deal to stay with said team. Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp saying he wants to stay in Germany may simply be a ploy to demand a better contract. Whether that comes from BvB or United remains to be seen. Dont rule him out. Same goes for Pep Guardiola. The Bayern Munich manager would be the best fit for United among all candidates: tactically sound, young and with an understanding of the importance of building a squad from academy through to the senior team. If Bayern Munich crashes out of the Champions League next week, with Franz Beckenbauer already unhappy with this weeks performance at the Bernabeu, United should test the waters. There is little suggestion Guardiola would leave, but nonetheless you still make the call. His relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson bodes well and United would pay over the moon to get him, no questions asked. Would Jose Mourinho leave Chelsea after only one season back at Stamford Bridge to embark on a United adventure? Better question: would Ferguson extend the olive branch, acknowledging his mistake of not giving the job to Mourinho in the first place? If stories are true that Mourinho broke down in tears after the job was given to Moyes, its conceivable he swaps blue for red. He would certainly bring swagger, confidence and appeal to the position. Other candidates will emerge. Those not proven winners and/or enigmatic personalities need not apply. United needs style and substance after the mess Moyes created. - On paper, Liverpool-Chelsea is as mouthwatering a match you can get. In practice, Sunday may turn into a farce of a crucial and possible league-deciding match at Anfield. Chelsea is five points back of Liverpool, not an insurmountable number considering a trip to Selhurst Park lay ahead for Liverpool. Crystal Palace has won five in a row, including wins over Chelsea and Everton. Liverpool can drop points. Chelsea is still in the mix. As is Manchester City. Yet Mourinho has made it clear wholesale line-up changes are on the way, after Chelseas 0-0 first leg Champions League draw against Atletico Madrid Tuesday. The return leg in West London goes Wednesday. New injuries to goalkeeper Petr Cech and defender John Terry complicates selection, with question marks surrounding the already walking wounded Samuel Etoo and Eden Hazard. So it looks to be a mish-mash Chelsea team taking to the field Sunday, basically opening the door for Liverpool to take another step towards clinching the title. The only virtual locks to play are Frank Lampard and John Obi Mikel (suspended for the second leg), and Nemanja Matic and Mohamed Salah (cup tied). After the four and assumedly goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer, all bets are off. Its an absolute shame a team still in the mix wouldnt make the league match priority. Its a tricky situation either way for Mourinho. After 35 league games, youd hope the effort would be consistent with the season. Sunday may turn out to be a colossal disappointment for all non-Liverpool supporters, and the league is worse off for it. - Manchester City may have kissed their title chances goodbye in a 2-2 draw against pesky Sunderland last week. In fairness, the Black Cats should have taken all three points, so perhaps City are lucky to still find themselves in the position theyre in. City needs Liverpool to lose a game, then win all their remaining games and rely on superior goal differential to be crowned Champions, as they were on the dramatic final day to win the league two seasons ago. That Sunderland gave City a go shouldnt surprise. Sunderland is 4-2-2 against City over the last four seasons. They are a bugaboo team for City. The blue side of Manchester will be hoping Sunderland stay in the relegation zone the rest of the season. Good riddance. - Norwich City is on the verge of disaster, facing relegation with three games to go. It was an ambitious summer of signings for the Canaries, but its all gone pear-shaped. Ricky van work-rate van Wolfswinkel has been the biggest of summer busts. Just one goal from 15 starts (24 appearances) for the Sporting Lisbon man is representative of the frustrating season. From front to back, they havent been good enough. A league-worst 28 goals and likewise league worst eight points from their travels is why they are fourth from the bottom. Firing manager Chris Houghton a fortnight ago was merely an act of desperation with the writing already on the wall. They wont get points against Manchester United Saturday with the emotion of Giggs, Butt and Scholes at the helm. Perhaps theyll catch a mentally drained Chelsea next week, but there is no guarantee there. And Arsenal in the final week is as tough a match as you can get. With points there for the taking for the current bottom three, it seems the last three games will be their farewell tour from the Premier League. Gareth Wheeler@WheelerTSNgareth.wheeler@bellmedia.ca Cheap Cincinnati Bengals Gear .cas NHL Play of the Year showdown continues today with a man whos spent most of his career on highlight reels and a goalie actually "reaching back" for a save. Stitched Cincinnati Bengals Jerseys . "I just think what it does for everybody in life is real simple," said Babcock early on Friday afternoon. "You dont give in. You just keep on keeping on. Is it going to go your way every time? No. But you choose your attitude and how you perform and how hard you dig in." Nearly four years to the day of the 2010 gold medal match in Vancouver, his team dug in with its best effort of these Olympics, snuffing out the high-powered Americans for another opportunity at gold. http://www.cheapbengals.com/.com) - Ryan Miller made 28 saves to record his fifth shutout of the season and second in as many nights as the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3-0 on Friday. Custom Bengals Jerseys . Reyes, 26, was traded from Atlanta to Toronto in July 2010 and spent the remainder of the season in the minors. He began 2011 in the majors and made 20 starts with the Blue Jays, going 5-8 with a 5.40 earned run average before he was waived on Aug. Cincinnati Bengals Jerseys China . Leaning forward with both hands on his knees, Buffon appeared to be resting or somehow trying to withstand the rain. Or perhaps the 36-year-old goalkeeper and Italy captain was reflecting on this: He is only the third player in history to be part of five World Cup squads, along with Germany great Lothar Matthaus and former Mexico goalkeeper Antonio Carbajal.CINCINNATI, Ohio -- Matt Adams emerged from his deep slump and saved the St. Louis Cardinals from another costly loss. Adams broke an 0-for-17 slump and hit a pair of homers in extra innings on Wednesday night, the last one in the 16th for a 5-4 victory over the Cincinnati Reds that protected the Cardinals hold on second place in the NL Central. Nice timing. "My rhythms been off a little bit, and that was causing me to chase pitches, but I felt pretty good tonight," Adams said. So did the rest of the Cardinals, who piled out of the dugout triumphantly after finally pulling it out in 4 hours, 50 minutes. The 16-inning game matched their longest of the season. And it was so much better than being on the other side. The Reds longest game of the season ended in one of their greatest disappointments. "For sure," Reds starter Bronson Arroyo said. "Definitely. When you play that many innings and have a couple of runners in scoring position ..." The Cardinals had dropped the first two games in the series, letting the Reds get within a game and a half for second place. They conclude their season series on Thursday. St. Louis leads it 11-8. Carlos Martinez (2-1) escaped a threat in the 15th, when Shin-Soo Choo singled and reached third on a sacrifice and a groundout. Chris Heisey came to bat and saw Matt Carpenter playing back at third base, so he decided on his own to try to bunt for a single. Heisey missed the pitch, Choo reacted and took off and was easily out at the plate. "Youre not going to try a safety bunt with two outs," manager Dusty Baker said. "Heisey thought the third baseman was back, he was bunting for a hit. Choo was going to try to score." Cincinnatis three, four and five hitters -- Joey Votto, Jay Bruce and Heisey -- were a combined 0 for 19. Given the reprieve, the Cardinals pulled it out. Theyve dropped five of seven overall, costing them precious ground in the divisions three-team race. The Pirates, Cardinals and Reds are all in good shape to make the playoffs -- one as a champion, the other two as wild cards. "That was just a character win," manager Mike Matheny said. "The guys just kept grinding, not giving up or giving in. The job the young bullpen did holding them down was impressive. Thats one of those wins you dont forget.&" St.dddddddddddd Louis wasted a chance to put it away in the 14th inning. Adams broke his deep slump by leading off with homer off Alfredo Simon. Speedy Billy Hamilton helped the Reds tie it with another stolen base in the bottom of the inning. Hamilton ran for Ryan Ludwick after his single off Edward Mujica, who blew a save chance for only the third time in 38 chances. Hamilton stole second -- hes 2 for 2 against catcher Yadier Molina -- and scored easily on Zack Cozarts single. Carpenter had three hits and a walk, scoring twice. Carpenter has five of the Cardinals 14 hits in the last two games. Arroyo broke with his history of subpar showings against the Cardinals. It was his 38th career start against St. Louis -- more than against any other team -- and he didnt have a lot to show for it, going 0-3 against the Cardinals this season and 8-16 in his career. He went seven innings and allowed three runs -- two earned -- giving the Reds chances that they squandered. St. Louis scored twice in the fourth, when Matt Holliday hit a sacrifice fly and Carlos Beltran came around on a throwing error by Votto on Allen Craigs grounder. Craig sprained his left foot while rounding the base on the play and left the game. X-rays were inconclusive. Hes heading back to St. Louis for more tests. "Any time youre sending Allen Craig away its not good news," Matheny said. Brandon Phillips led off the fifth with his 18th homer, giving him 100 RBIs. Hes the first Reds second baseman to reach the mark since Hall of Famer Joe Morgan drove in 111 in 1976, when the Reds swept the Yankees for their second straight World Series championship. Notes: RH Jake Westbrook felt good a day after he threw in the bullpen. Westbrook has been sidelined since Aug. 22 with a strained lower back. Hes eligible to come off the DL on Friday. Matheny isnt sure whether hell use him as a starter -- as Westbrook prefers -- or out of the bullpen when he returns. ... Carpenter leads the NL with 169 hits and 15 three-hit games. ... Arroyo tied a Reds record with three sacrifice bunts. ... LH Tony Cingrani (6-3) starts the final game of the series for Cincinnati. He went on the DL after leaving a game Aug. 20 with a strained lower back. RH Lance Lynn (13-9) starts for St. Louis. Hes 3-0 in four starts against the Reds this season. 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